Show Notes and Links for "10-Minute Mindfulness"

Thanks for purchasing 10-Minute Mindfulness: 71 Simple Habits for Living in the Present Moment.

I’ve put together these notes of every link that’s mentioned in 10-Minute Mindfulness to help with your mindfulness habit efforts.

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Table of Contents

Part I: Introduction

Alan Watts – British philosopher, writer, and speaker
Declutter Your Mind
Peace is Every Step by Thích Nhất Hạnh S
Awakening Joy by James Baraz
Peace of Mindfulness by Barrie Davenport

Part II: Building Mindfulness Habits

Studies on Mindfulness

In a study by Chambers et al. (2008), participants (with no previous meditation experience) in a mindfulness meditation retreat reported significantly higher mindfulness, less rumination, and fewer symptoms of depression than the control group.
Students who practice mindfulness show they perform better on tests than those who don’t.
Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital revealed in a study that regular meditation causes the brain’s cerebral cortex to thicken.
A study by Ortner et al. (2007) showed that mindfulness meditation allowed participants to disengage from emotionally upsetting pictures and focus better on a cognitive task.
A 2009 study revealed that the practice of mindfulness meditation promotes cognitive flexibility and helps our thinking to be less rigid and more creative.
A University of North Carolina study of “relative happy, non-distressed couples” found that the couples who actively practiced mindfulness saw improvements to their relationship happiness.
Mindfulness practices help shrink the amygdala—the fear center of the brain.
A 2015 study of older adults confirms that mindfulness meditation practices support getting a better night’s sleep.
University of Oregon researchers found that a mindfulness technique called “integrative body-mind training” can result in brain changes that may be protective against mental illness.
A variety of studies support the findings that mindfulness practices help people with chronic pain to relieve symptoms and cope with pain.

Willpower by Roy F. Baumeister and John Tierney

“Tiny Habits” – concept by B.J. Fogg

155 Ways To Reward Yourself

Part III: Morning Mindfulness Habits

Philip Doddridge – eighteenth century English educator and writer
It has been reported that the average sleep cycle is ninety minutes, which is repeated throughout the night.
Using an app like Sleep Cycle will help you make sure that you’re getting a full night’s rest.
“Snooze-Proof” 5-Step Wake-Up Strategy by Hal Elrod, author of The Miracle Morning book series
The Art of Forgiveness, Lovingkindness, and Peace by Jack Kornfield
Multiple Studies has been conducted on the link between gratitude and well-being and confirms that practicing gratitude increases happiness and reduces depression.
“How to Practice Gratitude Even When You Don’t Feel Like It”
Check out this gratitude course.
25-minute guided body scan meditation
For more information on stretching exercises, check out these six full-body stretches.
Check out this video on deep breathing exercises.
The Yoga of Breath: A Step-by-Step Guide to Pranayama by Richard Rosen
The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
Watch this video of author and mindfulness pioneer Jon Kabat-Zinn discussing why and how to observe your thoughts to disempower them.
Commencement speech given by US Navy Admiral William H. McCraven at the University of Texas
Check out this video demonstration on how to make your bed.
Watch this video of Jon Kabat-Zinn talking with Oprah Winfrey about his mindful morning routine.
There’s even research that shows we often get our best ideas while engaging in mindless tasks, like showering, driving, and doing chores.
5-minute shower meditation on MindBodyGreen.com
Drinking a large, cool glass of water after you wake also fires up your metabolism by 24% for ninety minutes according to a research study.
Contigo water bottle.
Why lemon? Because it promotes hydration, is a good source of vitamin C, and supports weight loss.
Read “The Miracle of Water Mindfulness” to help change your relationship with water.
British research scientists concluded “that smiling can be as stimulating as receiving up to 16,000 Pounds Sterling in cash.”
According to several studies, smiling can trick your brain into feeling happy, even when you feel sad as you’re smiling. Faking a smile or laugh works as well as the genuine article.
Read more about the science of smiling and why it is such a powerful gesture in this article.
Try either the Calm or Headspace apps, which provide specific prompts that you can use to create a relaxed state of mind.
Julia Cameron explains “Morning Pages” on her blog
How to Build a Daily Personal Journaling Habit
The Artist’s Way and The Miracle of Morning Pages: Everything You Always Wanted to Know about the Most Important Artist’s Way Tool by Julia Cameron
365 Journal Writing Ideas by Rossi Fox
Start Where You Are: A Journal for Self-Exploration by Meera Lee Patel
Free journal writing prompts at Journaling Sage
Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott
Steve’s site, Develop Good Habits, and Barrie’s site, Live Bold and Bloom, have hundreds of articles on a variety of self-improvement topics.
Use a tool called Clippings.io to upload your notes to a tool like Evernote.

Some of Barrie’s favorite inspirational books include:

The Power of Now and A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle
Way of the Peaceful Warrior by Dan Millman
Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck
Loving What Is by Byron Katie
A Year of Living Consciously: 365 Daily Inspirations for Creating a Life of Passion and Purpose by Gay Hendricks, PhD
The How of Happiness by Sonja Lyubomirsky, PhD

Some of Steve’s favorite inspirational books include:

Replay by Ken Grimwood
The Success Principles by Jack Canfield
Deep Work by Cal Newport
The Power of Less by Leo Babauta
Focal Point by Brian Tracy
The Joy of Less by Francine Jay
The Slight Edge by Jeff Olson
The One Thing by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan

Here is a list of 110 self-improvement books to choose from in various categories.
Upanishads – classic Hindu text
Deepak Chopra – author and spiritual teacher
The Power of Intention: Learning to Co-create Your World Your Way by Wayne Dyer The Intention Experiment: Using Your Thoughts to Change Your Life and the World by Lynne McTaggart.
Rapt: Attention and the Focused Life by Winifred Gallagher
S.M.A.R.T. Goals Made Simple – 10 Steps to Master Your Personal and Career Goals.
Creative Visualization: Use the Power of Your Imagination to Create What You Want in Your Life by Shakti Gawain.
Healing Visualizations: Creating Health Through Imagery by Gerald Epstein, MD
The Art of Mental Training – A Guide to Performance Excellence by DC Gonzalez
Samovar Tea Lounge in San Francisco
The Book of Tea by Kakuzo Okakura with an introduction by American tea writer Bruce Richardson.
This List Of Blogs about tea drinking, as well as the Samovar Tea Lounge blog.
The World Atlas of Coffee: From Beans to Brewing — Coffees Explored, Explained and Enjoyed by James Hoffmann
Recent Studies suggest thateating breakfast does raise the body’s energy level and restores the blood glucose level to normal after an overnight fast.
Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life by Thích Nhất Hạnh
Mindful Eating: A Guide to Rediscovering a Healthy and Joyful Relationship with Food by Jan Chozen Bays, MD.
“Mindful Eating As Food for Thought” from New York Times
Growing Up Mindful: Essential Practices to Help Children, Teens, and Families Find Balance, Calm, and Resilience by Christopher Willard.
8 Ways to be Powerfully Present with Your Family
According to one study of the Oakland-based Mindful Schools program, “student behavior improved significantly in all four areas measured—paying attention, self-control, classroom participation, and respect for others—and these gains were maintained seven weeks later.”
List of celebrities who meditate regularly
The Calm or Headspace apps are good starting points because they provide specific prompts that you and your family can follow.
Check out this article from The Chopra Center on three kid-friendly meditations.
A Handful of Quiet: Happiness in Four Pebbles by Thích Nhất Hạnh
Sitting Still Like a Frog: Mindfulness Exercises for Kids (and Their Parents) by Eline Snel.
Numerous studies have shown that spending time in nature can boost your immune systems, relieve symptoms of depression and anxiety, improve concentration and creativity, relieve stress, and improve your memory.
“Why Meditating in Nature Is Easier”
Three-hour Zen Meditation Music with Nature Sounds that you can use while working or studying
Check out this simple 5-minute workout video on YouTube.
Research has shown that yoga provides a variety of mental and physical health benefits, helping reduce stress, improve mood, reduce inflammation, and increase energy.
Yoga For Beginners (by Body Wisdom) DVD
Rodney Yee’s Am/Pm Yoga for Beginners
Neuroscience now proves that our thoughts can change the structure and function of our brains.
A bran scan imaging study showed that using positive self-affirmation activates the parts of our brains involved in expecting and receiving a reward, reinforcing the likelihood that positive change will occur.
Psychologist Ethan Kross of the University of Michigan found in his research that employing “a subtle linguistic shift — shifting from ‘I’ to your own name — can have really powerful self-regulatory effects.”
list of 101 positive affirmations
64 Power Thought Cards and You Can Heal Your Life by Louise Hay
10-Minute Declutter
10 Minute Declutter: The Stress-Free Habit for Simplifying Your Home

Part IV: Late Morning Mindfulness Habits

According to a report in USA Today, the average American’s commute to work is 25.5 minutes each way, which amounts to about 204 hours a year spent commuting.
A 2014 Time magazine article highlights the negative impact this time in your car has on your mental and physical health.
Jerry Kennard in an article for Health Central: “Sitting in a car is incompatible with stress build up. There is no physical outlet. We can’t fight and we can’t run, so tension simply builds with no obvious outlet.”
Read this article from Everyday Mindfulness about mindful driving.
If you commute to work on a bus or subway, you’ll enjoy this article about practicing mindfulness on your way to work.
Mindful Work: How Meditation Is Changing Business from the Inside Out, by David Gelles
Read this Harvard Business Review article on “How to Practice Mindfulness Throughout Your Work Day,” which includes a guided breathing exercise.
Try this ten-minute guided breathing meditation on YouTube if you prefer a guided meditation.
Read this article by Joshua Becker of Becoming Minimalist called “The Simple Guide to a Clutter-Free Desk.”
The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran
Check out this article in the Harvard Business Review about finding purpose in your work as an ongoing effort.
Life on Purpose: How Living for What Matters Most Changes Everything by Victor J. Stretcher, PhD, MPH
A research study revealed that checking and sending email at work can increase your blood pressure and heart rate, and cause a spike in levels of the stress hormone cortisol. And yet we still do it compulsively.
Mindhacks
B.F. Skinner’s theory of variable rewards
Get organized by using unroll.me and SaneBox, two resources to help unsubscribe you from lists quickly and group your emails together for better organization.
Read 10-Minute Digital Declutter to help you organize and declutter all of your digital devices and learn how to reduce your dependence on them.
Michael Hyatt: “Batching is setting aside an intentional amount of time for intentional tasks and making an intentional effort to not allow the distractions or interjections of others break that focus.”
Check out Cirillo’s website for more information on using the Pomodoro Technique.
Sorry, I Have To Take This by David Rusk and Bradley Kramer
Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence by Daniel Goleman
You can learn more about outcome-based thinking by reading this article.
Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

Part V: Afternoon Mindfulness Habits

Margaret Paul, PhD: “When your sense of worth is attached to the effort you make and putting forth your very best, then the process itself becomes exciting and rewarding, regardless of the outcome.”
According to a recent article in Time magazine, “the philosophy of ‘slow work’ challenges the unsustainable practice of doing everything as fast as possible and offers an alternative workplace framework for energizing people and helping people better align their personal and professional priorities.
In Praise of Slowness: Challenging the Cult of Speed by Carl Honore
Declutter Your Mind
Emotional Intelligence 2.0 by Travis Bradberry and Jean Greaves
Check out this article on eleven ways to be more mindful in your relationships at work.
Shunryu Suzuki – Zen monk, author, and teacher
Check out this podcast called, “The Beginner's Mind: Why Naiveté Is a Critical Business Asset.”
Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind by Shunryu Suzuki.
Meetings Suck: Turning One of the Most Loathed Elements of Business into One of the Most Valuable by Cameron Herold
Meetings Matter: 8 Powerful Strategies for Remarkable Conversations by Paul Axtell
Research links sitting for long periods (whether at work, in front of the TV, or in your car) with obesity, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.
Studies show that your body can benefit from simply standing up, stretching your muscles, and moving around for a few minutes.
The First 20 Minutes: Surprising Science Reveals How We Can Exercise Better, Train Smarter, Live Longer by Gretchen Reynolds
FitBit
Mindful Movements: Ten Exercises for Well-Being by Thích Nhất Hạnh
How to Avoid Burnout and Take a Digital Break by Kate Swoboda for Tiny Buddha
Digital Detox: Unplug To Reclaim Your Life by Damon Zahariades
Research shows that bad moods lead to procrastination, while feelings of happiness increase both productivity and success.
List of common moods and mood descriptions
Mind Over Mood by Dennis Greenberger, PhD and Christine A. Padesky, PhD.
William James – well-known psychologist and philosopher
The 5 Languages of Appreciation in the Workplace: Empowering Organizations by Encouraging People by Gary Chapman and Paul E. White.
Focus on the Good Stuff: The Power of Appreciation by Mike Robbins and Richard Carlson
Mike Robbins’ Ted talk on the power of appreciation
“How to Make a Big Decision without Regret”
Ted Talk on Intuitive Decision Making
A mind map is six times better in helping you retain information than by words alone.
Tony Buzan – popularized mind mapping
Ted talk by Tony Buzan, the founder of mind mapping.
Tony’s website
iMindMap and MindMeister
Listening to music is a powerful mindfulness habit that can reduce stress, elevate your mood, raise your IQ, and offer many other mental and physical health benefits.
Listening to music—especially classical music—can change your brain in ways that improve memory and learning.
Michael Torke – American composer
Ten Pieces Of Music Designed To Help You Relax
Mozart for Meditation—Quiet Music for Quiet Times
A report published in The Journal of Positive Psychology revealed that people found dating partners with higher humility more attractive than those with low humility scores.
Humility: The Secret Ingredient of Success by Pat Williams and Jim Denney.
Humility Is the New Smart: Rethinking Human Excellence in the Smart Machine Age by Edward D. Hess and Katherine Ludwig
The Science and Practice of Humility: The Path to Ultimate Freedom by Jason Gregory
An important part of shifting toward a growth mind-set is understanding the science behind the concept.
Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Dr. Carol Dweck and see her TED talk on the power of believing that you can improve.
Amy Cuddy – social psychologist, author, and lecturer
Amy Cuddy’s Ted Talk on how your body language shapes who you are. Also, check out her book
Presence: Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenges by Amy Cuddy
The Definitive Book of Body Language: The Hidden Meaning Behind People’s Gestures and Expressions by Barbara and Allan Pease
Studies show that laughter has some profound physical benefits. It can reduce pain by releasing pain-killing hormones known as endorphins.
Laughing Your Way to Mindfulness by Debbie Woodbury for the Huffington Post
Check out these videos on America’s Funniest Home Videos.
Check out some humor blogs like Funny or Die and Cracked.
Watch a video of someone else laughing, and see how contagious laughter really is.
Me Talk Pretty One Day and When You Are Engulfed In Flames by David Sedaris
Check out this article on the health benefits of humor and laughter and this article on twenty-two ways to bring more laughter into your life.
TED Talk on why we laugh
Declutter Your Mind
Lovingkindness: The Revolutionary Art of Happiness, by Sharon Salzberg
Guided loving-kindness meditation with Tara Branch, founder of the Insight Meditation Community of Washington, DC.
The Practicing Mind: Developing Focus and Discipline in Your Life by Thomas M. Sterner
Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence by Daniel Goleman
Ted Talk on developing focus

Part VI: Evening Mindfulness Habits

“16 Things You Should Do At The End Of Every Work Day”
“How Exceptionally Productive People End The Workday”
Enjoy this guided visualization that takes you on a walk along the beach, and this one that takes you on a walk in the forest.
Twenty-minute Secret Garden guided meditation
Studies confirm that having relationships can make you live longer, reduce feelings of stress, and improve your overall happiness.
Marcel Proust
The Top Five Regrets of the Dying: A Life Transformed by the Dearly Departing by Bronnie Ware
Anxious in Love by Carolyn Daitch
Jack Kornfield on Walking Meditation
“The Ultimate Guide to Walking Meditation”
“Ritual” by Kevin Carrico in Cultural Anthropology
A recent study has shown that rituals around food even make it taste more flavorful and worthy of savoring.
Benefits of the Dinner Table Ritual in the New York Times
How to Celebrate Everything: Recipes and Rituals for Birthdays, Holidays, Family Dinners, and Every Day In Between by Jenny Rosenstrach
60+ Family Tradition Ideas from the blog The Art of Manliness
A recent study showed that washing dishes can significantly lower stress levels if the effort is done mindfully.
Bringing Home the Dharma: Awakening Right Where You Are by Jack Kornfield
Karen Maezen Miller – Zen teacher and writer
“What the Buddhists Can Teach Us About Household Chores”
“12 Essential Rules to Live More Like a Zen Monk”
Here is an extensive list of different crafts you can learn.
Novice to Expert will teach you the process of how to systematically break down a new skill and work at it as a daily habit.
Studies show that those who watch television for three hours or more a day have a greater chance of being obese than those who watch less than an hour of daily TV.
In fact, heavy television users report feeling less happy and more anxious than light users.
Professors at the University of Maryland also discovered through a study that unhappy people watch up to 30 percent more television than happy people.
If you’d like more ideas on what you can do instead of watching television, check out this list of 101 ideas.
Ted Talk on the value of trying something new for thirty days.
A University of Vermont study looked at how mindful and positive parenting impacted the well-being of the children involved in the study.
The Conscious Parent by Dr. Shefali Tsabary
Mindful Parenting: Simple and Powerful Solutions for Raising Creative, Engaged, Happy Kids in Today’s Hectic World by Kristen Race, PhD.
According to psychotherapist and author Sasha T. Loring, in an article for Mindful, “Much of our mental energy is focused on getting what we want.”
Loving What Is: Four Questions That Can Change Your Life by Byron Katie
Letting Go: The Pathway of Surrender by David R. Hawkins
Says Toni Bernhard, J.D., in an article for Psychology Today, “The more we become aware of the ways in which our thoughts, emotions, speech, and actions haven’t served us or others well, the more likely we’ll be able to change our behavior in the future.”
Moleskine Passion Wellness Journal
The Success Principles by Jack Canfield
According to studies conducted by The National Sleep Foundation, most adults require seven to nine hours of sleep a night. But according to the CDC, a third of adults aren’t getting enough sleep on a regular basis.
Daily Routine Makeover: Evening Edition: Evening Tactics to Preserve Your Health, Sleep Restfully and Power Up for Tomorrow by Zoe McKey
One study found the gratitude habit decreased depression and another one discovered that showing evening gratitude increased optimism, sleep quality and overall health and lowered blood pressure.
If you’d like to learn more about how to express gratitude, we recommend this simple prayer of gratitude.
If you want to find out more about the world of essential oils, Steve has a series of large posts on the topic. The best place to get started is his post about using essential oils for a good night’s sleep. And he also has a review of five of the best essential oils diffusers.
“Yoga Nidra for Sleep” with Jennifer Piercy
“Into Sleep” by Quiet Mind Café
Use this script as a guide for recording your own meditation, or you can write your own script that suits you.
Enjoy this extensive library of guided meditations hosted by Tara Brach, founder of the Insight Meditation Community of Washington, DC.

Part VII: Conclusion

Habit Stacking

Be accountable by using an app like Coach.me to track your progress and frequently talking to an accountability partner with whom you share your breakthroughs, challenges, and future plans.

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